Device for substantially relieving in an upright stack of sheet-like articles the lowermost article from the weight of the articles above the same

ABSTRACT

A device for substantially relieving in a stack of sheet-like articles arranged in an upright chute the lowermost article from the influence of the weight of the sheet-like articles above the same, comprising at least two superimposed support elements, for instance wheels, operatively connected with each other so as to move with their circumferences in the same direction and arranged to engage at least one upright side of the stack of said articles to be moved by the latter whenever the lowest article is removed from said stack. The upper support member is continuously in engagement with the adjacent portion of the stack and moves at a lower speed than the lower support element which engages its adjacent portion of the stack only periodically during short periods of time.

United States Patent [1 1 A pp Oct. 23, 1973 [5 p vrcE FOR SUBSTANTIALLY RELIEVING A IN AN UPRIGHT STACK or SHEET-LIKE ARTICLES THE LOWERMOST ARTICLE FROM THE WEIGHT or THE ARTICLES ABov THE SAME [75] Inventor: Georg Kopp,Neuhausen am Rheinfall, Switzerland [73] Assignee: Sig Schweizerische Industrie- Gesellschaft 221 Filed: Aug. 4, 1972 21 Appl. No; 277,919

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,267,614 5/l968 Germany 27l/23 Primary Examiner-Evon C. Blunk Assistant Examiner-Bruce H. Stoner, Jr. Attorney-Benjamin H. Sherman et al.

[57] ABSTRACT A device for substantially relieving in a stack of sheetlike articles arranged in an upright chute the lowermost article from the influence of the weight of the sheet-like articles above the same, comprising at least two superimposed support elements, for instance wheels, operatively connected with each other so as to move with their circumferences in the same direction and arranged to engage at least one upright side of the stack of said articles to be moved by the latter whenever the lowest article is removed from said stack. The upper support member is continuously in engagement with the adjacent portion of the stack and moves at a lower speed than the lower support element which engages its adjacent portion of the stack only periodically during short periods of time.

i L imsllfi n ji uni Patented Oct. 23,1973

2 Sheets-Sheet 23 and DEVICE FOR SUBSTANTIALLY REIEVING IN AN UPRIGHT STACK OF SHEET-LIKE ARTICLES THE LOWERMOST ARTICLE FROM THE WEIGHT OF THE ARTICLES ABOVE THE SAME Sheet-like articles, such as blanks of paper or cardboard, folding boxes in a flat condition and the like, are generally supplied in stacks and for the purpose of processing in machines such as printing machines, packaging machines and the like are inserted into supply chutes. When the individual articles are withdrawn from the lower end of the chutes, each lowermost blank should not be subjected to any substantial load when a dependable operation is to be assured.

The invention relates to a device for assuring a farreaching relieve of the sheetlike articles disposed in the lower range of the chute from the sheet-like articles above the lower sheet-like articles so that when the lowermost articles reach the lowermost end of the shaft, these lowermost articles are conducted to a discharge or withdrawal device or to a still lower range of the chute.

The known devices of this type are provided with a plurality of separating and/or pressure plates or slides which are arranged in a rather complicated manner and also are operatedin a rather complicated manner.

The present invention solves the problem of relieving the lowermost sheet-like articles in a stack from the weight of the upper articles in a very simple manner, in that at least one pair of supporting elements is provided of which one supporting element is arranged in spaced relation directly above the other supporting element. These two supporting elements are operatively connected with each other so that they move or rotate in the same direction, whereby the upper supporting element rotates at a lower speed than the lower supporting element. These two superimposed supporting elements are arranged adjacent the chute which contains the stacked sheet-like articles and the upper supporting element engages during its rotating movement continuously the adjacent portion of the stack of sheet-like articles, while the lower supporting element engages the stack of sheet-like articles periodically only during a short period of time. Furthermore, the upper supporting element rotates slower or faster depending whether the lower supporting element is in engagement with the stack or is not in engagement with the same, so that accordingly the feed of the sheet-like articles from the upper range of the chute into the lower range takes place correspondingly, either at its lower speed or at a higher speed, whereby the weight of the portion of the stack acting on the upper supporting element together with the lower supporting element subjected to the weight of the lower sheet-like articles in the lower range of the stack comprises the drive of the device in such a manner that the lower portion of the stack is subjected to a very reduced force or load.

The drawing illustrates diagrammatically by way of example an embodiment of the device of the invention.

FIG. 1 illustrates a side elevation view of the device in one operating position.

FIG. 2 illustrates the same device in another operating position.

FIG. 3 illustrates the device in still another apparatus position.

FIG. 4 illustrates diagrammatically a modified device.

FIG. 5 illustrates diagrammatically another modified device.

FIG. 6 illustrates a brake wheel with bristles.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view along VIIVII of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 8 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 7, but of a modified brake wheel portion. Referring to the draw- The device of the invention comprises a housing 1 which is disposed adjacent an upright chute 2. Th lower end of the chute 2 is provided with an inwardly extending shoulder 3, for instance formed by a rectangular frame. This lower shoulder 3 or frame supports in the chute 2 a lower stack 4, of sheet-like articles 5 comprising for instance, foldable cardboard blanks for producing therefrom tuck-in boxes. From this stack 4, is moved periodically the lowermost blank 5,, in known manner, in the direction of the arrow 6, namely straight downwardly by a pulling action. This pulling action is performed by a pneumatic and/or mechanical removal device, whereby the blank 5, is so bent that its marginal zones slide from the shoulder 3 of the chute. The upper portion of the chute 2 contains a greater number of additional blanks 5, which form an upper stack 4 which when the device described in the following would not be used, would rest directly upon the lower stack 4, and would subject the latter to the full weight of the stack 4. Such a great load or weight when resting on the lower stack 4, and transmitted to the lowermost blank 5, would, however, make a dependable operation of the not-illustrated blank removal device very questionable.

In order to relieve the lower stack 4, from the weight of the stack 4 thereabove, the invention provides the device with two brake wheels 7 and 8 which are arranged substantially vertically in spaced relation one above the other. These brake wheels 7 and 8 are mounted on horizontal shafts 9 and 10, respectively, in

the housing 1 and are provided on their circumference with radially projecting brake needles l1 and 12, respectively. The shaft 9 of the lower brake wheel 7 has mounted thereon a gear wheel 13 which meshes with a gear wheel 15 of a somewhat larger diameter mounted on a shaft 14 arranged between the axes of the wheels 7 and 8. The gear wheel 15 in turn meshes with a still larger gear wheel 16 mounted on the shaft 10 of the upper brake wheel 8. It is obvious that in this type of a construction a rotation of one brake wheel 7 or 8 will cause also a rotation of the other brake wheel 8 or 7 and that in view of the intermediate gear wheel 15 both brake wheels 7 and 8 will rotate in the same direction. Furthermore, in view of the described transmission arrangement, the lower brake wheel will rotate substantially faster than the upper brake wheel 8, for instance about 4.5 times faster.

The stack 4 disposed in the upper part of the chute 2 will rest, in view of the arrangement of the two gear wheels 8 and 7, on the teeth 12 of the upper brake wheel 8. The force transmitted to the lower stack 4, is dependent upon the transmission ratio of the gearing 13-16 and may be reduced to a reasonable value by a corresponding selection of the transmission ratio of the gearing. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the number of revolutions of the lower brake wheel 7 is 4.5 times greater than the one of the upper brake wheel 8 and this has the result that the force or weight acting on the lower stack 4 is reduced to 2/9 of the weight of the upper stack 4 The housing 1 is arranged opposite an opening 17 in the adjacent wall of the chute 2 in such manner that during the rotation of the brake wheels 7 and 8 the needles l1 and 12 of the same are introduced into the lower stack 4 and in the upper stack 4 respectively. As long as one of the needles 11, of which only two are provided in the illustrated embodiment, is introduced into the lower stack 4 it cannot move faster forward as this is made possible by the successive withdrawal of the lowermost blank and therefore the other brake wheel 8 rotates only very slowly counterclockwise, as shown in FIG. 1 whereby for instance two of its twelve brake needles 12 are introduced into the upper stack 4 and in this manner prevent a downward movement of the articles in this stack 4 FIG. 2 illustrates the device of the invention in the position in which the needle 11, which previously was introduced into the lower stack 4 as shown in FIG. 1, has just moved outwardly from the stack 4,. The weight of the upper stack 4 which rests on the upper brake needles 12 which successively enter this stack 4 owing to the shaft rotation drives the brake wheel 8. The latter in turn drives by means of the gearing 16, 15, 13 the lower brake wheel 7 with a high speed. This has been indicated in FIG. 2 by the arrows shown in solid lines, while in the FIGS. 1 and 3 the lower speed is indicated by arrows illustrated in dash lines. In this particular position of high speed, shown in FIG. 2, the individual brake needles 12 which release the blanks 5 of the upper stack 4 cause the same to drop upon the lower stack 4 which grows in size correspondingly until the lower brake needles 1] are introduced into the stack 4,. This phase of the operation is illustrated in FIG. 3 and from here on the device operates again in the same manner as discussed in connection with FIG. 1, or in other words the brake wheels 7 and 8 rotate only slowly depending upon the capacity of the not-illustrated removal device.

It is obvious that the illustrated number of needles and also the transmission ratio of the circumferential speed of the two brake wheels may be varied within wide limits. In particular, it would be possible to provide the lower brake wheel 7 with only a single brake needle 11 or also with more than two brake needles 11. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 4, a number of pairs of brake wheels 7a, 8a, 7b, 8b may be employed provided.

with the same or with different numbers of needles, whereby these pairs of brake wheels are arranged on different, preferably opposite sides of the chute 2 and are preferably arranged off-set in vertical direction with respect to each other as shown in FIG. 5. If one employs two pairs of brake wheels one above the other, the upper brake wheel of the lower pair may at the same time be the lower brake wheel of the upper pair.

The device of the invention operates extremely dependable and it should be noted in this connection that the device of the invention does not require any drive means because the weight of the sheet-like articles in the chute serves as a driving force for the brake wheels.

The embodiment of the device illustrated in the drawing provides brake wheels which are provided with needles for supporting the sheet-like articles in the chute. It is, however, also possible to employ other types of supporting elements. Articles which are not suitable for being engaged by needles may, for instance, be engaged by brake wheels in which the outer perimeter is provided with elastic deformable material. The FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate a brake wheel 8 which is provided with bristles 20, while in FIG. 8 is illustrated a brake wheel 8" with foam rubber inserts 21. In such a construction, the perimeter of the lower wheel would only extend one or a number of fractions of the circumference into the chute for engaging the articles therein.

The support elements need not necessarily be constructed as wheels, they may also have the shape of movable endless bands.

It is to be noted that the chute 2 need not be made of walls which enclose a space for the stacks of sheetlike articles, whereby the walls opposite of one or more brake wheel pairs have to be provided with suitable apertures. The chute may consist, for instance, also of vertical or almost vertically arranged guide rods. Furthermore, the lowermost article 5 of the lower stack 4 need not necessarily be removed by a vertically downwardly directed pull. One may also provide rolls or slidable members for removing the lowermost particle laterally by a slidable movement. The type of the removal device depends upon the nature of the sheet-like articles which may, for instance, comprise a label and whose future use has to be considered. Principally, the removal device may also remove not only one, but if desired, at the same two or more articles from the lower end of the stack. But this last-named procedure may not be very practical in most cases.

What I claim is:

1. Device for substantially relieving in a stack of sheet-like articles arranged in an upright chute the lowermost sheet-like articles from the influence of the weight of the upper sheet-like articles, comprising means for successively removing the lowermost sheetlike articles from the lower end of said chute, at least a pair of support elements arranged one above the other adjacent said stack of sheet-like articles which are guided by said chute, means operatively connecting said support elements with each other to cause the same to move in the same direction when engaged by the articles in said chute and in such a manner that the upper support element is moved at a lower speed than the lower support element, said upper support element during its movement being continuously in engagement with the adjacent portion of said stack, while said lower support element engages its adjacent portion of said stack only periodically during a short period of time, thus causing the upper support element to move slower than the lower support element, and thereby causing the weight of the upper portion of said stack which acts on said upper support element and moves also said lower support element to be transmitted to the lower portion of said stack with a greatly reduced force.

2. Device according to claim 1, including gear means for operatively connecting said support elements with each other.

3. Device according to claim 1, in which said support elements comprise brake wheels rotatable about horizontal axes, and radially projecting needles on said brake wheels which are being inserted in said stack of sheet-like articles during the rotation of said brake wheels.

4. Device according to claim 1, including gear means for operatively connecting said support elements with each other, the upper brake wheel being provided on its entire circumference with radial needles while the lower brake wheel has needles on only limited zones of its circumference.

5. Device according to claim 1, in which said support elements comprise brake wheels rotatable about horizontal axes, the circumference of said brake wheels being provided at least along a portion thereof with a layer of elastic deformable material.

6. Device according to claim 1, in which said support elements comprise a plurality of pairs of brake wheels arranged along different sides of said upright chute.

7. Device according to claim 1, in which said support wheels. 

1. Device for substantially relieving in a stack of sheet-like articles arranged in an upright chute the lowermost sheet-like articles from the influence of the weight of the upper sheet-like articles, comprising means for successively removing the lowermost sheet-like articles from the lower end of said chute, at least a pair of support elements arranged one above the other adjacent said stack of sheet-like articles which are guided by said chute, means operatively connecting said support elements with each other to cause the same to move in the same direction when engaged by the articles in said chute and in such a manner that the upper support element is moved at a lower speed than the lower support element, said upper support element during its movement being continuously in engagement with the adjacent portion of said stack, while said lower support element engages its adjacent portion of said stack only periodically during a short period of time, thus causing the upper support element to move slower than the lower support element, and thereby causing the weight of the upper portion of said stack which acts on said upper support element and moves also said lower support element to be transmitted to the lower portion of said stack with a greatly reduced force.
 2. Device according to claim 1, including gear means for operatively connecting said support elements with each other.
 3. Device according to claim 1, in which said support elements comprise brake wheels rotatable about horizontal axes, and radially projecting needles on said brake wheels which are being inserted in said stack of sheet-like articles during the rotation of said brake wheels.
 4. Device according to claim 1, including gear means for operatively connecting said support elements with each other, the upper brake wheel being provided on its entire circumference with radial needles while the lower brake wheel has needles on only limited zones of its circumference.
 5. Device according to claim 1, in which said support elements comprise brake wheels rotatable about horizontal axes, the circumference of said brake wheels being provided at least along a portion thereof with a layer of elastic deformable material.
 6. Device according to claim 1, in which said support elements comprise a plurality of pairs of brake wheels arranged along different sides of said upright chute.
 7. Device according to claim 1, in which said support elements comprise a plurality of pairs of brake wheels arranged along different sides of said upright chute, said pairs of brake wheels being arranged in vertical direction offset with respect to each other.
 8. Device according to claIm 1, in which said support elements comprise a plurality of pairs of brake wheels arranged along different sides of said upright chute, the upper brake wheel of one of the pairs of brake wheels forming the lower brake wheel of another pair of brake wheels. 